Support

A cookie is a piece of data stored by your browser or device that helps websites like this one recognize return visitors. We use cookies to give you the best experience on BNA.com. Some cookies are also necessary for the technical operation of our website. If you continue browsing, you agree to this site’s use of cookies.

DOT Freight Grants Worth $78.9M Benefit Key Senators, States

The 10 recipients of almost $80 million in targeted freight grants may be spread across
the country from Washington state to Mississippi, but they share at least one thing
in common: their members of Congress sit on key transportation or appropriations committees.

The Department of Transportation (DOT) this month announced the recipients of $78.88
million in FASTLANE Small Project grants for freight infrastructure projects. The
grant applications were submitted during the Obama administration, but the awardees
were selected by the Trump administration.

A Bloomberg BNA analysis shows that each of the grants was awarded to areas represented
in Washington by a well-placed senator, in a politically significant state or county—or
both.

The DOT said it evaluated the 123 small project grant applications based on criteria
such as cost-sharing, mobility, safety, and community and environmental outcomes,
among other elements.
FASTLANE is an acronym for Fostering Advancements in Shipping and Transportation for the Long-Term
Achievement of National Efficiencies.

In the end, however, the decision on the 10 winners rested with Transportation Secretary
Elaine Chao.

“Ultimately, it is the Secretary who selects the projects for whom to propose awards,”
the DOT said in a written statement to Bloomberg BNA.

The Trump administration’s commitment to reducing the federal grant footprint is expected
to leave less money for states to pursue in the future, which means political factors
could become more significant for grant applicants going forward.

Earmarks ‘Alive and Well’

Nine of the 10 grants will go to states represented by a senator who sits on the Commerce,
Science and Transportation Committee, the Appropriations Committee, or sometimes both.

“While the formal practice of earmarks has gone away, the reality is that practice
is alive and well in the United States Congress,” John Hudak, a deputy director at
the Brookings Institution and author of a book on earmarks, told Bloomberg BNA.

Senior agency officials and political appointees know who sits on the appropriations
and authorizing committees and understand that congressional oversight can become
“burdensome”
to agencies when key players are unhappy, Hudak said.

Florida, Maine and Mississippi received grants and each state has a powerful authorizer
or appropriator in the Senate:

The only state to be awarded a grant without a senator in a key position was Ohio,
usually a swing state in presidential elections. And the district in which the funded
project is located is represented by a House appropriator.

Power to Choose

Competitive grants like the FASTLANE grants tend to give the administration more discretion
to pick winners and losers, according to Hudak.

Six of the 10 states awarded grants voted for Trump in the 2016 election. Among the
recipient states that backed Hillary Clinton are several swing states. Some of the
grants also went to several so-called pivot counties, those that voted for Trump in
2016 after supporting Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012.

For example, the Rogers’ Rangers Bridge project in New Hampshire, a state gave its
electoral votes to Clinton, is located in Coos County and connects to Essex County,
Vt. Both Coos and Essex counties were Trump pivot counties, according to
voting data from Ballotopedia. New Hampshire has two Democratic senators—Sen. Jeanne Shaheen sits on the Appropriations
Committee and Sen. Maggie Hassan serves on the Commerce, Science, and Transportation
Committee.

“There’s no apolitical distribution of funds in the United States,” Hudak told Bloomberg
BNA. “It’s just a matter of what political source is benefiting or how many political
sources will benefit.”

FASTLANE Grants

The FASTLANE Small Projects grants will help fund improvements to 100 rail crossings,
250 miles of track and more than 70 rail bridges, according to a DOT release:

U.S. 550 South Connection to U.S. 160: La Plata County, Colo., $12.3 million.

The Trump administration is re-soliciting fiscal year 2017 applications for what were
previously the FASTLANE Large Project grants, a counterpart to the grants announced
Aug. 8. The department is accepting applications until Nov. 2 for fiscal 2017 Large
Projects and fiscal 2018 Large and Small Projects under the Infrastructure Rebuilding
America (INFRA) Grants program, which the administration said will give preference
to rural projects.

With assistance from Madi Alexander.

To contact the reporter on this story: Shaun Courtney in Washington at
scourtney@bna.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Paul Hendrie at
pHendrie@bna.com

All Bloomberg BNA treatises are available on standing order, which ensures you will always receive the most current edition of the book or supplement of the title you have ordered from Bloomberg BNA’s book division. As soon as a new supplement or edition is published (usually annually) for a title you’ve previously purchased and requested to be placed on standing order, we’ll ship it to you to review for 30 days without any obligation. During this period, you can either (a) honor the invoice and receive a 5% discount (in addition to any other discounts you may qualify for) off the then-current price of the update, plus shipping and handling or (b) return the book(s), in which case, your invoice will be cancelled upon receipt of the book(s). Call us for a prepaid UPS label for your return. It’s as simple and easy as that. Most importantly, standing orders mean you will never have to worry about the timeliness of the information you’re relying on. And, you may discontinue standing orders at any time by contacting us at 1.800.960.1220 or by sending an email to books@bna.com.

Put me on standing order at a 5% discount off list price of all future updates, in addition to any other discounts I may quality for. (Returnable within 30 days.)

Notify me when updates are available (No standing order will be created).

This Bloomberg BNA report is available on standing order, which ensures you will all receive the latest edition. This report is updated annually and we will send you the latest edition once it has been published. By signing up for standing order you will never have to worry about the timeliness of the information you need. And, you may discontinue standing orders at any time by contacting us at 1.800.372.1033, option 5, or by sending us an email to research@bna.com.

Put me on standing order

Notify me when new releases are available (no standing order will be created)